--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What distinguishes - in both senses of…" description: "\"What distinguishes - in both senses of that word - contemplation is rather this: it is a knowing which is inspired by love. \"Without love there would b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/josef-pieper-11414_attainment_what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-tha_376411.png" --- # What distinguishes - in both senses of that word… ![“What distinguishes - in both senses of that word - contemplation is rather this: it is a knowing which is inspired by love. "Without love there would be no contemplation." Contemplation is a loving attainment of awareness. It is intuition of the beloved object.” quote by Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/josef-pieper-11414_attainment_what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-tha_376411.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/josef-pieper-11414_attainment_what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-tha_376411.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/josef-pieper-11414_attainment_what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-tha_376411.png) > “What distinguishes - in both senses of that word - contemplation is rather this: it is a knowing which is inspired by love. "Without love there would be no contemplation." Contemplation is a loving attainment of awareness. It is intuition of the beloved object.” [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Contemplation arises from love; without love, deep reflective awareness cannot exist. **In simple terms:** Love fuels true contemplation. Key Takeaway Cultivate love to deepen insight. Themes philosophy spirituality love contemplation awareness Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical spiritual When to use this quote - personal meditation - spiritual practice - education - creative work - relationship building Key Concepts virtue ethics intimacy mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - Can love be cultivated for better contemplation? - What is the role of love in intellectual pursuits? A Different Perspective Pure intellectual analysis may miss emotional depth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awareness/) [Beloved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beloved/) [Contemplation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemplation/) [Intuition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intuition/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Meditation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meditation/) ## Related quotes > [The common element in all the special forms of contemplation is the loving, yearning, affirming bent toward that happiness which is the same as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-common-element-in-all-the-special-forms-of-contemplation-is-the/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [Two sentiments alone suffice for man, were he to live the age of the rocks - love, and the contemplation of the Deity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-watts/two-sentiments-alone-suffice-for-man-were-he-to-live-the-age-of-the/) [Isaac Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-watts/) > [Contemplation is the loving sense of this life, this presence and this eternity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/contemplation-is-the-loving-sense-of-this-life-this-presence-and-this/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [Spirituality lies in regarding existence merely as a vehicle for contemplation, and contemplation merely a vehicle for joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/spirituality-lies-in-regarding-existence-merely-as-a-vehicle-for/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [“Spiritual reading, discursive meditation, and prayer prepare our hearts for contemplation. Contemplation is a state of realized oneness with God. When engaged in contemplation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-finley/spiritual-reading-discursive-meditation-and-prayer-prepare-our-hearts/) [James Finley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-finley/) > [“First, it has been charged with inviting people to remain in a kind of desperate quietism because, since no solutions are possible, we should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/first-it-has-been-charged-with-inviting-people-to-remain-in-a-kind-of/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“us. The good of contemplation is contemplation—not some result that it may bring.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-wilson-watts/us-the-good-of-contemplation-is-contemplation-not-some-result-that-it/) [Alan Wilson Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-wilson-watts/) > [Because of Christianity the West has missed many things, and one of them is meditation, the rarest flowering of a human being, because they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-christianity-the-west-has-missed-many-things-and-one-of/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“The "supreme good" and its attainment -- that is happiness. And joy is: response to happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-supreme-good-and-its-attainment-that-is-happiness-and-joy-is/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [The mind of one meditating on a single object becomes one-pointed. And one-pointedness of mind leads to abidance in the self. Real attainment is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramana-maharshi/the-mind-of-one-meditating-on-a-single-object-becomes-one-pointed-and/) [Ramana Maharshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramana-maharshi/) > [At length weariness succeeds to labor, and the mind lies at ease in the contemplation of her own attainments without any desire of new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/at-length-weariness-succeeds-to-labor-and-the-mind-lies-at-ease-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [In transmitting the dharma, there is neither explanation nor teaching; there is neighter hearing nor attainment. Since explanations never really explains, nor are they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-daido-loori/in-transmitting-the-dharma-there-is-neither-explanation-nor-teaching/) [John Daido Loori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-daido-loori/) > [“All achievements, whether in the business, intellectual, or spiritual world, are the result of definitely directed thought, are governed by the same law and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-allen/all-achievements-whether-in-the-business-intellectual-or-spiritual/) [James Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-allen/) > [The Attainment of freedom, whether for a person, a nation or a world, must be in exact proportion to the attainment of nonviolence for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/the-attainment-of-freedom-whether-for-a-person-a-nation-or-a-world/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Life, whether in this world or any other, is the sum of our attainment, our experience, our character. The conditions are secondary. In what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-hubbel-chapin/life-whether-in-this-world-or-any-other-is-the-sum-of-our-attainment/) [Edwin Hubbel Chapin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-hubbel-chapin/) ## More by Josef Pieper > [The delight we take in our senses is an implicit desire to know the ultimate reason for things, the highest cause. The desire for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-delight-we-take-in-our-senses-is-an-implicit-desire-to-know-the/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [“The vacancy left by absence of worship is filled by mere killing of time and by boredom, which is directly related to inability to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-vacancy-left-by-absence-of-worship-is-filled-by-mere-killing-of/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [“Patience is not the indiscriminate acceptance of any sort of evil: "It is not the one who does not flee from evil who is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/patience-is-not-the-indiscriminate-acceptance-of-any-sort-of-evil-it/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [Contemplation does not ignore the 'historical Gethsemane', does not ignore the mystery of evil, guilt and its bloody atonement. The happiness of contemplation is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/contemplation-does-not-ignore-the-historical-gethsemane-does-not/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [Justice is a habit (habitus), whereby a man renders to each one his due with constant and perpetual will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/justice-is-a-habit-habitus-whereby-a-man-renders-to-each-one-his-due/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [The happy life does not mean loving what we possess, but possessing what we love." Possession of the beloved, St. Thomas holds, takes place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-happy-life-does-not-mean-loving-what-we-possess-but-possessing/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [The brave man uses wrath for his own act, above all in attack, 'for it is peculiar to wrath to pounce upon evil. Thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-brave-man-uses-wrath-for-his-own-act-above-all-in-attack-for-it/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [Beauty, however, must here be understood in its original meaning: as the glow of the true and the good irradiating from every ordered state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/beauty-however-must-here-be-understood-in-its-original-meaning-as-the/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [Unless we regain the art of silence and insight, the ability for nonactivity, unless we substitute true leisure for our hectic amusements, we will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/unless-we-regain-the-art-of-silence-and-insight-the-ability-for/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [To be conscious of gratitude is to acknowledge a gift.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/to-be-conscious-of-gratitude-is-to-acknowledge-a-gift/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [If God really became incarnate, and if His Incarnation can with justice compel man to change his life,then we have no alternative but to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/if-god-really-became-incarnate-and-if-his-incarnation-can-with/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [Surrender to sensuality paralyzes the powers of the moral person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/surrender-to-sensuality-paralyzes-the-powers-of-the-moral-person/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [Only those are called liberal or free which are concerned with knowledge; those which are concerned with utilitarian ends... are called servile...The question is...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/only-those-are-called-liberal-or-free-which-are-concerned-with/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [To celebrate a festival means: to live out, for some special occasion and in an uncommon manner, the universal assent to the world as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/to-celebrate-a-festival-means-to-live-out-for-some-special-occasion/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [“Since we nowadays think that all a man needs for acquisition of truth is to exert his brain more or less vigorously, and since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/since-we-nowadays-think-that-all-a-man-needs-for-acquisition-of-truth/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) [Explore all 60 Josef Pieper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) ## More Attainment quotes > [Life, whether in this world or any other, is the sum of our attainment, our experience, our character. The conditions are secondary. In what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-hubbel-chapin/life-whether-in-this-world-or-any-other-is-the-sum-of-our-attainment/) [Edwin Hubbel Chapin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-hubbel-chapin/) > [The Attainment of freedom, whether for a person, a nation or a world, must be in exact proportion to the attainment of nonviolence for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/the-attainment-of-freedom-whether-for-a-person-a-nation-or-a-world/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“All achievements, whether in the business, intellectual, or spiritual world, are the result of definitely directed thought, are governed by the same law and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-allen/all-achievements-whether-in-the-business-intellectual-or-spiritual/) [James Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-allen/) > [In transmitting the dharma, there is neither explanation nor teaching; there is neighter hearing nor attainment. Since explanations never really explains, nor are they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-daido-loori/in-transmitting-the-dharma-there-is-neither-explanation-nor-teaching/) [John Daido Loori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-daido-loori/) > [At length weariness succeeds to labor, and the mind lies at ease in the contemplation of her own attainments without any desire of new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/at-length-weariness-succeeds-to-labor-and-the-mind-lies-at-ease-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [The mind of one meditating on a single object becomes one-pointed. And one-pointedness of mind leads to abidance in the self. Real attainment is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramana-maharshi/the-mind-of-one-meditating-on-a-single-object-becomes-one-pointed-and/) [Ramana Maharshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramana-maharshi/) > [Wisdom can boast no higher attainment than happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-radcliffe/wisdom-can-boast-no-higher-attainment-than-happiness/) [Ann Radcliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-radcliffe/) > [Not merely by rules of conduct and religious observances, nor by much learning either, nor even by attainment of concentration, nor by sleeping alone,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/not-merely-by-rules-of-conduct-and-religious-observances-nor-by-much/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The most important rules that I ever adopted to help me in achieving my goals were those I learned from a very successful man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/the-most-important-rules-that-i-ever-adopted-to-help-me-in-achieving/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [Like myself, all Americans have a deep concern for the well-being of Iran. With them I have watched closely your courageous efforts, your steadfastness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/like-myself-all-americans-have-a-deep-concern-for-the-well-being-of/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [The ability to discriminate between that which is true and that which is false is one of the last attainments of the human mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-f-cooper/the-ability-to-discriminate-between-that-which-is-true-and-that-which/) [James F. Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-f-cooper/) > [The more clearly defined and keenly desired your goals, the more of your natural creativity will be released for goal attainment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/the-more-clearly-defined-and-keenly-desired-your-goals-the-more-of/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [Every attainment, every step forward in knowledge, follows from courage, from hardness against oneself, from cleanliness in relation to oneself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-attainment-every-step-forward-in-knowledge-follows-from-courage/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [And only the very courageous will be able to keep alive the spirit of individualism and dissent which gave birth to this nation, nourished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/and-only-the-very-courageous-will-be-able-to-keep-alive-the-spirit-of/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [Some read for style, and some for argument: one has little care about the sentiment, he observes only how it is expressed; another regards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/some-read-for-style-and-some-for-argument-one-has-little-care-about/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) Browse all 363 Attainment quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What distinguishes - in both senses of that word - contemplation is rather this: it is a knowing which is inspired by love. \"Without love there would be no contemplation.\" Contemplation is a loving attainment of awareness. It is intuition of the beloved object.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Josef Pieper" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-that-word-contemplation-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attainment" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-that-word-contemplation-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/josef-pieper-11414_attainment_what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-tha_376411.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/josef-pieper-11414_attainment_what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-tha_376411.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/josef-pieper-11414_attainment_what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-tha_376411.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What distinguishes - in both senses of that word - contemplation is rather this: it is a knowing which is…” — Josef Pieper", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Josef Pieper", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What distinguishes - in both senses...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-that-word-contemplation-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/what-distinguishes-in-both-senses-of-that-word-contemplation-is/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```